Best Places49424, MI Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 49424, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
49424 ranks 6,155th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low crime by a wide margin, and car insurance costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 49424
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
49424's strengths and weaknesses
Where 49424 ranks high
- Crime safetyBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Short commute18.8 minutes each way, better than 89% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 88% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 87% of zip codes
Where 49424 ranks low
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 22% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 24% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 72 pleasant days a year, better than only 28% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 49424
A household needs to earn about $81,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 49424 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $92,310, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 49424's effective rate of 1.07%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 49424
49424's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 49424.
Who works in 49424, and how
Work in 49424 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 49424
49424 has more late-night spots per resident than 67% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 49424 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 49424, month by month
49424 sees roughly 72 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 35, with lows near 21. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35° | 28° | 21° |
| April | 59° | 47° | 37° |
| July | 84° | 73° | 61° |
| October | 64° | 54° | 44° |
Flying in and out of 49424
The nearest airport, Muskegon County, is about 25 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is General Mitchell International, about 90 miles away.
The best schools in and around 49424
Schools across 49424 average a C+, better than 50% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Lakewood Elementary SchoolA · 65% proficient
- New Groningen SchoolA · 64% proficient
- Waukazoo Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
Top middle schools
- Cityside Middle SchoolB · 46% proficient
- Creekside Middle SchoolB · 43% proficient
- Harbor Lights Middle SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
Top high schools
- West Ottawa High School CampusB− · 43% proficient
- Zeeland East High SchoolB− · 41% proficient
- Holland High SchoolC− · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 49424 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
49424 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 49424 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 49424 suits
Families
Schools land around the 50th percentile and crime safety beats 92%.
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 76% of zip codes and 9% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 49424
Is 49424 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 49424 ranks 6,155th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low crime, heat safety, and short commutes, and lowest on car insurance costs and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 49424 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $300,703. The overall cost of living runs about 8% below the national average. Set against a $92,310 median income, cost of living beats 76% of zip codes.
Is 49424 safe?
Yes, 49424 is safer than 92% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $205 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 49424?
July highs average about 84 degrees, and January highs near 35 with lows near 21. That works out to about 72 pleasant days a year, more than 28% of zip codes.
Is 49424 good for families?
Schools beat 50% of zip codes, crime safety beats 92%, and childcare runs $741 a month.
Compare 49424 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 49424. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 49424 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
49424 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 49424: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 49424: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 49424: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 49424: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
49424 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.